


Where Life Takes You

by What_Lies_Within



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Gold & Silver & Crystal | Pokemon Gold Silver Crystal Versions
Genre: Family Feels, Family Loss, Friendship, Heartbreaking, Redemption, Tearjerker
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:02:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 19,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24852019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/What_Lies_Within/pseuds/What_Lies_Within
Summary: Living on her own in the forest was all Eevee had ever known. Driven from her home, she finds herself wounded and rescued by the Reed family. With her preconceived notions of humanity dashed, Eevee learns what it means to live along side humans and be a part of a family.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 13





	1. Rejected By Nature

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Full_Moon_Nights](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Full_Moon_Nights/gifts), [Nocturnal_Novelist](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nocturnal_Novelist/gifts), [Manifest_Destiny](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Manifest_Destiny/gifts).



Where Life Takes You

By What_Lies_Within

  
  
  


“Expect the unexpected, but most of all, expect the natural.”

-Maxime Lagacé

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Authors Note:

This is going to be my first work, so any feedback would be greatly appreciated and valued, whether it’s good or bad. I’ll be doing my best to make reading this worthwhile for everyone. I was inspired to try my hand at writing by Manifest_Destiny. Also, it's thanks to the immense support of Nocturnal_Novelist and his incredibly supportive discord server for giving me the confidence to put the inspiration to good use. I highly recommend reading their stories as they are HELLA better than I am.

* * *

Chapter 1:

Rebased by Nature

  
  


Hunger was neither a friend nor a stranger at this point, and Eevee had become quite used to its claws digging deep into her abdomen. Eevees’ stomach began to grumble, serving as her daily reminder to begin her ritual. Every day was the same: wake up, search for food, go home to sleep, repeat. The forest, however, was as indomitable as it was inhospitable towards her. This was simply another fact Eevee had merely grown accustomed to, doing her damnedest to survive in the only environment she had ever known, but each day was beginning to get harder as meals became more and more scarce.

Eevee took a moment to sniff the air and immediately noticed the thick humidity permeating the air, a telltale sign of an oncoming storm. The looming trees all but blotted out the sky but she knew it was going to rain tonight, the usually dark forest a noticeable shade deeper. Most of what little sunlight could reach the forest floor was impeded by the approaching storm. It was as if nature itself was offended by anything below the canopy.

If she were to eat tonight, she would have to search before dark fell and consumed what little light that there was left. This year had been rough and her options were extremely limited, but this didn't stop Eevee from leaving her den to search for something she considered edible.

 _"I can’t keep going to bed hungry._ Eevee thought to herself. _For the love of Arceus let there be some berries left…"_

Tip-toeing through the forest floor, she took great care to keep from drawing attention to herself; Eevee did her best to hurry towards the edge of the forest, this area had much fewer trees and offered much more visibility to the sky above. Assorted bushes, shrubs, and smaller trees were growing due to the excess sunlight and water access but today the sky was filled with sullen black clouds. The air, which already smelled of rain, had begun to even taste of the impending downpour.

 _"This isn’t good…_ She pressed her ears back against the back of her head. _I don’t have much time."_

Eevee tentatively walked into the more open areas and approached a small cluster of berry trees. After giving them a thorough look over, she noticed that many twigs had been broken and there were only unripe berries left on their thin branches. It was clear that whoever or whatever had been here had gorged themselves already. In the distance, she could hear chattering, but she ignored them. After all, this was a well-known spot for other small Pokémon like herself and the occasional Rattata.

_"The next feeding ground is a bit far from here…"_

  
  


While stuck deep in thought, the hungry fox jumped and scrambled beneath the thicket as the landscape flashed and roared. The storm had been growing ever closer while she was searching, reminding her of its presence when she gave pause to inspect the bushes. Eevee took a few deep breaths as she tried to slow down her frantically beating heart.

After a minute of thinking, she came to a decision to wait until after the storm passed before looking for food. Almost as though she needed reminding of its severity, the storm let another streak cross the sky along with another deafening clap. This time the wind seemed to come to life, spurred into action by the muddled atmosphere above her.

 _"I can’t afford to get sick in this state,"_ Eevee concluded. " _I can move if I’m hungry, but not if I get sick."_

The approaching rainstorm -while threatening much- provided one boon: with other Pokémon seeking shelter, it was extremely unlikely she were to be attacked by a predator, so Eevee threw caution to the wind and began to sprint back into the depths of the forest. Jumping over gnarled roots above ground and skirting the edges of other territorial Pokémon, she quickly arrived at the humble hovel she called home. Many small rodent Pokémon peeked at her from their shelters as she ran by.

 _"No place like home, I guess"_ Eevee chuckled to herself.

As long as she could remember, Eevee had never had a place she could call home. Always on the move and avoiding treading on the territories of others, she was never able to settle anywhere... That is until she came across an odd structure last year during the summer months. Eevee hung around it for a long time, trying to decide if it was the home of a hostile Pokémon, or if it belonged to one of the very few human squatters that dotted the forest. Eevee eventually took claim of it as it seemed that many larger Pokémon avoided this part of the woods, but she could never figure out why.

The small building only had a single room, the walls made of a single panel of wood, the windows long since broken, and its front door broken in half. The top half remained in place but the lower panel had caved in on itself, producing a convenient entrance. The interior was left barren, save for a single bed constructed of many twigs, leaves, and long grass she had made herself.

By now the storm was directly overhead and what little light left was quickly dissipating. Eevee, exhausted from her sprint home and her lack of food, slowly padded up to her bed, moving it away from the open window. It didn’t take long before she could hear rain beginning to fall onto the thick canopy of foliage above and onto the ground below.

 _"It’s going to be a long night…"_ Eevee silently lamented and let out a yawn.

“Eeeevaaa~”

The storm raged above the treeline, claiming the skies above for its symphony. The old shack offered just enough protection from the elements for the little fox to curl up in her bed comfortably. Curling her tail towards herself, Eevee was able to rest her head on it as an improvised pillow. It was no easy task, but Eevee began to drift to sleep; the rumbling thunder quickly becoming a lullaby. With any luck, tomorrow would be different. 

* * *

_Darkness._

_Ever-present, it took all sight from her._

_A voice was echoing around her. One she did not recognize._

_A second joined the first. This one was familiar._

_It was her mother._

_She was begging for her to stay._

_Eevee bolted into the void._

_If she could be found she would finally know._

_Why was she abandoned?_

_Why was she alone?_

_What felt like hours passed._

_A bright flash surrounded her._

_Footsteps._

_Then…..nothing._

_The calls from her mother were silenced._

_The first voice finally spoke again._

_It was far clearer than before._

_Only four words._

_Each syllable boomed in her head with the ferocity of a thunderclap._

**“** **_Ugh….not another one...”_ **

* * *

  
  


Eevee lurched from her bed as her nightmare hurled her into reality abruptly. Her fur stood on end as she tried to see her surroundings. The interior of her shelter was still pitch black.

“What the hell…?” Eevee asked no one in particular.

Unsurprisingly the nothingness of the night kept silent, but every instinct in her body was wracking her mind to flee. The sounds of rain had all but ceased, only the occasional drops of rain pitter-pattered the ground and roof of her den. Eevee poked her head out the window and looked towards the sky. Between the towering trees Eevee could see the moon and the twinkling lights of stars. The storm had clearly passed, the barest minimum of light had trickled down to allow some vision but Eevee could see no threats in the immediate vicinity. Anxiety began to grow; her instincts had never been wrong before. Eevee began to wonder why wouldn’t her feelings go away? Leaving the window, she began padding back to her bed but had the overwhelming urge to look outside one more time. Eevee hopped onto the windowsill and peered outside again, immediately regretting her decision.

Multiple pairs of eyes from the distance stared back, as though the void manifested them just for her. Each pair, albeit different sizes, bore the same pattern; angry red globes with a single yellow band stared at her unblinkingly. Eevee froze in place in her window perch. It wasn’t until the chittering began that she was able to snap out of it and retreat inside. Time was of the essence and with so many of… them outside, her instincts screaming at her to flee, and the chittering intensifying, anxiety quickly transformed into fear. This primal urge took root in her mind and drove her to do the only thing she could: flee for her life.

Eevee climbed back onto the windowsill and leapt, glancing down mid-flight to see the surprised faces of her would be invaders. They appeared to be dark brown rodents with red eyes and wicked teeth. She immediately identified them as Patrat. As Eevee landed one of them charged at her, aiming to bite her with his buck teeth. Before it could get close, a quickly discharged Swift knocked it back and into the wall of the shed with an audible thud. The rest of the Patrat chittered faster, keeping their baleful stare on her as they began to approach her. Turning tail and sprinting off into the woods must have struck the wrong chord, however, because as she fled, multiple sets of footsteps could be heard behind the fleeing eevee.

Fear had driven her to flee but Eevee had no way of knowing what direction she was heading. Her heart was pounding away in her breast. Each stride sapped more and more strength from her already malnourished and tired limbs. The occasional bush and infantile tree whipped at her head and tore at her fur. The chase went from mere minutes to nearly an hour before she finally made it to the forest's edge, the dividing line between the wilderness and the nearest human home. The Patrat kept up the chase, pausing only when Eevee had made it to a fence line marking a human residence..

 _"This is a bad idea…but hopefully they won’t follow me."_ Eevee grimly thought.

Her hesitation quickly vanished as she looked from where she came and saw no less than three Patrat still giving chase but a larger Pokémon had also joined the chase. Their chittering echoing from the noticeably thinner forest towards her.

Her small exhausted frame received a dose of adrenaline as she took a few steps back and began to headbutt the fence. For this single moment, fortune was on her side as the panel she hit was brittle and gave way after a few strikes. Eevee jumped at what would be her salvation and tried to squeeze through the narrow entry. Her fur catching on her hind leg, Eevee yanked herself free. Her “fight or flight” response suppressing her sense of pain as fur was ripped away.

Eevee ran into the center of the human’s back yard and looked back for her assailants. Keeping her eyes firmly locked on the hole she had crawled through, Eevee charged up another Swift, ready to drive away any of the Patrat foolish to attempt to crawl through. Seconds turned to minutes as Eevee stood motionless, but nothing ever came. Eevee’s instincts were still out of control, adamant that she continue to flee, though her adrenaline rush was beginning to wear off.

Eevee felt her fatigue wash over her all at once. The lack of sleep, the lack of food, and the run itself had drained all but the last vestiges of her strength. Slowly pain began to blossom on her right hind leg and over her right eye. Eevee noticed the blurriness from her right eye too late as she tried to look at herself. All she could tell was that something was wet.

 _I think I might have overdone it…_ Eevee thought to herself, wincing at the pain. It spiked in the rhythm of her heartbeat.

Eevee turned and started walking towards the house for a place to hide when a heavy blow slammed into her blind side and sent her spiraling into the side of the house. She felt multiple snaps and the impact drove the breath from her. Eevee fell and collapsed, struggling to get air into her damaged body. Who or whatever attacked her didn’t follow up. It was when the chittering began that her heart sank. Eevee looked from her undamaged eye and saw him, a tall Watchog standing over her and the Patrat dropping from the top of the fence line. Each one locked eyes on her and began moving towards the wounded fox.

 _"I didn’t think those rats could climb that"_ Eevee whimpered and looked back to Watchog. " _T_ _hey must have climbed on top of this guy."_

Her instincts went silent, her pain all but ceased, and breathing became forced and quick. Hyperventilating, Eevee looked dead in the unforgiving eyes of the towering Watchog and asked one question knowing full well the answer he was going to give.

“Why?”

The Watchog put on a slightly sympathetic look and gave her the answer she had already anticipated.

“I have kids to feed. It’s just the way it is.”

Closing her eye, Eevee took a deep breath as the Watchog began to lean down with bared fangs. To her, time seemed to slow down as her life flashed before her eyes. Her time spent in the forest played like a cinematic, a monument to her entire life. She remembered her days as a pup, struggling to even reach the lowest hanging berries. The adolescence of her life showed her fleeing from would be predators, and finally, the past year of her living in her den. Her nights of solitude and hunger as food became increasingly scarce as time went on. Her only good memory was of when she had finally claimed her home.

 _"What a wretched existence I had…"_ Eevee thought to herself.

Regret filled her as she waited for the Watchog’s teeth to sink into her flesh, ready to accept the release of death. Her regret slipped away, and her entire body relaxed in response to the inevitable.

However, death never came. A loud voice filled the area as lights came to life behind her, followed with a crashing noise.

“ **_HEY! GET OUTTA HERE!”_ **

Eevee opened her good eye and saw the Watchog frozen in place, staring at the distraction behind her. Looking behind the large rodent, she watched the three Patrat turn to look at the new arrivals but were immediately sent flying backwards onto their asses by an unseen force as a deafening _Boom_ resounded through the backyard. The Patrat, now coughing and wheezing, fled towards the hole in the fence. Some odd dust had coated their bodies and now trailed behind them as they fled.

She quickly realized what was happening. The rats had made too much noise during their hunt and had woken the humans inside the house behind her. The human investigating was a god-given boon for her to escape, but it was difficult to do so. One eye was swollen shut, one haunch refused to respond to her commands, breathing became painful once more. Eevee could smell something foul in the air but ignored it. She had to escape now while she could move and pray the humans wouldn’t find her,

Summoning up what she could, Eevee began to crawl away into some foliage while keeping her good eye on the human who had chased away the Patrat and Watchog. It wasn’t until she heard a bark from a new Pokémon did she pause. Looking back she realized the human wasn’t alone, next to him stood was a canine pokemon she didn’t recognize as it was sporting a strange mask. Eevee turned back and tried to redouble her efforts in escape, but quickly found it futile. 

A chill went down her spine, bringing her attention back towards her own body. For the first time, she realized she was shivering. Her body was getting cold and her wounds were more severe than she had thought. Putting her paws in front of her one more time, she tried to pull herself forward one more time, but she was at her absolute limit. Her head feeling woozy and her sight beginning to fail, Eevee lied down on her uninjured side and wondered if she would wake up again. The last thing she would remember this night would be the sweet smell of flowers.

_"Could be worse ways to go I guess..."_

* * *

  
  
  
  


Loud banging made Robert sit upright in bed. Groggily Robert looked over to his clock, it was far too early for anyone to be awake. Rubbing his tired eyes, he swung his legs over to the side of the bed and struggled to gain full control of his limbs.

“Good lord I’m getting too old for this nonsense.”

Getting up like this at 60 years of age had been getting increasingly more and more difficult. The main reason his daughter and granddaughter moved into his home with him was specifically to help him with chores he couldn’t manage anymore. Nonetheless, Robert was stubborn; always had to do things himself.

It didn’t take long for Robert to find his clothes from the previous day and slip them on. The outfit he now sported was a pair of overalls over a pair of baggy jean shorts and a simple plain t-shirt that was stained in many places. Grabbing a pair of thick leather gloves and sliding them into his back pocket, he marched into the hall and made his way to his daughters’ room.

“Delilah! Wake up! I think more wild Pokémon are after my garden again!” Robert called, mildly annoyed at the situation.

Robert left the door after receiving a garbled “okay dad” and returned to his room. This hasn’t been the first-time wild Pokémon decided to infiltrate his garden, and it probably wouldn’t be the last time either. Retrieving his shotgun, he loaded it with repellent rounds. These were designed to explode into Repel infused powder on contact, these were the only allowed method of deterring unwanted Pokémon until he received a license for hunting. Not that he wanted one.

Robert headed to the back door of the house while Delilah got ready. Soon a heavy thud shook the wall and Delilah came running to the room with a red furred canine at her heels. Her normally straight black hair running wild from being woken so abruptly. Her Pokemon stood at attention, eager to help. Delilah narrowed her green eyes at her father,

“Dad, wait! Let me and Bones handle this!” Delilah said, looking down at her Growlithe. He barked in agreement.

“Nu-uh, I’m not gonna sit here on my laurels and watch. What if there’s more than one this time?” Robert argued.

“Then at least let me go out first! What if you miss and they attack? Like you said! There could be more than one?” Delilah countered.

Robert stood up and took a step towards his daughter. “That’s where you come in hun. I’m counting on you to have my back if the worst comes to pass.”

Unable to offer any further argument, his daughter merely nodded and gestured to him to take the lead. The two headed to the back door, taking places at the light switch and at the door handle.

After nodding to one more time, Delilah flipped the switch and Robert kicked the back door hard, causing it to fly open violently. The door slammed into the side of the house with a heavy bang. Taking a few steps forward and counting five Pokémon in his garden, He sucked in a deep breath and bellowed.

“ **_HEY! GET OUTTA HERE!”_ **

Taking aim at the three rat Pokémon who were now facing his direction, Robert fired a single round from his shotgun. The impact sent them reeling and sputtering as the Repel powder worked its magic. Before the initial discharge, the largest Pokémon had frozen in place but was now running for its life. Robert kept an eye on all the retreating rats and noticed the smaller ones diving into a small hole in his fence.

“Goddamn rats knocked a hole in my fence!” Robert stomped to the hole, moving a wheelbarrow in front of it. Bones trotted behind him, keeping an eye out to protect his master’s father while sporting an improvised mask made by Delilah. This prevented him from inhaling the Repel Rounds.

Robert stomped back to the house and stopped when he realized something. Of the five on his property, he only counted four of them having fled. He promptly discharged the empty shell and popped another into its place.

Not looking towards the red dog, Robert gave Bones instructions.

“Bones…wait a few minutes then I want you to sniff out the hiding spot of the last one. It’s still here.” Robert paused for a moment. “Delilah, I want you to go get my good light. The big spotlight one.”

The canine barked in acknowledgment and Delilah quickly slipped inside after a quick “okay.” Shortly after Delilah returned with the flashlight and handed it over to him. It was a comically large flashlight on a small handle with a trigger to turn it on and off.

A look of concern flashed across her face for a moment and wondered out loud.

“What are they this time dad?”

“Patrat and a Watchog. They’re omnivores and I reckon this summer has them hungrier than they’re used to,” Robert replied gruffly and continued. “One of em is still here hiding to wait for us to go away. Probably to tell its friends when it's safe.”

“Bones, you stay with dad, okay? Keep him safe. I’ll bet that gun woke up Sasha again.” Delilah looked down to her friend. Bones let out a small bark and, using his hind legs, peeled his mask off.

As Delilah walked back inside, Robert knelt down to Bones and rubbed his head. He knew he had to find the rodent fast. The damage one patrat could do to his small garden was enough to make him shudder. After all, this garden was everything to him.

Pulling the trigger on the grip of his flashlight, a brilliant beam of light sprang to life and he began to sweep its light back and forth. After a couple passes, Robert notices something odd. Kneeling down, Robert put his hand on a patch of grass that had caught his attention and brought it back to inspect it. It was blood, and there was a fair amount.

“Well damn…. I didn’t think a Repel Round could puncture skin,” Robert thought out loud.

Tilting his light up, Robert noticed it was a small trail of the blood on two sides, one leading to the hole in the fence and one leading towards his flower beds. Wiping his hand on his overalls, he stood back up and began to follow the trail towards his flowerbeds.

 _"They wouldn’t bring their wounded with them on a food run, they must’ve been huntin’ and I spooked them away."_ Robert thought to himself. He looked down to Bones.

“Alright boy, I need you to sniff it out for me. Just do me a favor and don’t jump at em just yet. I think it’s hurt. And careful of my flowers.”

Bones let out a disappointed snort, but acknowledged anyway. Putting his nose close to the ground and sniffing the blood, Bones trotted into the flowerbeds. Shortly Bones returned, looking a bit shaken.

“What’s wrong boy? Did it bite the dust already?”

Bones shook his head quickly and let out a startlingly loud bark. Before he could ask his next question, the dog bit into his leggings and tugged lightly. Bones exuded a sense of urgency rarely seen in the docile canine. The surprisingly impatient gesture caused the flashlight to tumble onto the ground.

“Alright boy calm down, give me a second...” Robert said as he bent over to pick up his fallen gear. Giving it a quick glance to make sure it was still serviceable, he gestured to Bones to lead the way. The trail led into the heart of his modest garden when he was a small bundle of fur lying motionless in the patch of lilies. A quick sweep of his flashlight revealed red beads glistening on the petals of some of his blooms. The ground, saturated by the storm, refused to absorb the spilled blood. The life essence curving and spiraling around on the ground beneath it in seemingly random directions. Kneeling down again, he tried to get a good look at the wounded creature. It seemed to be a quadrupedal fox with white tufts of fur around its neck.

The poor thing had its right eye swollen, the surrounding tissue bulging slightly but no open wounds for it to have painted the area so well. Moving the light’s beam slightly down its length revealed the grisly culprit. A large gash ran the length of the Pokémon’s leg, a small crimson stream slowly oozing onto the ground drop by drop. Roberts’ heart went out to this poor fox, it was clearly in a lot of pain.

Robert glanced over at the Loyal Pokémon. “Listen to me Bones, go get Delilah and get her _NOW!_ ”

Bones took it before Robert had finished speaking, braying as loud as he could along the way.

Robert put on his second glove and gingerly picked up the injured Pokémon. It mewled softly in his arms as the change in posture likely aggravated its wounds to some degree. This was no time to worry about his garden, his plants would grow again after some tending. Robert turned and walked as fast as he could back to the house without aggravating his precious cargo. Still cradling the Pokémon, he met Delilah at the back door. Delilah’s eyes widened with shock.

“Dad! What’s going on?”

“Hun, I need you to get the truck and go get a doctor from the PokéCenter in Goldenrod. The Patrat were after this little thing. I’ll call them before you get there.”

Delilah turned around and all but sprinted away. Before she got too far Robert called out.

“Is Sasha still awake?”

“She went back to bed!” she yelled over her shoulder as she disappeared through the front door.

Glancing down at the pokémon in his arms, he could tell it felt a lot lighter than it should. He walked up his steps and into the house.

Robert went to the hallway and hollered. “Sasha! Wake up! Come to the bathroom and help me!”

Robert then walked to the bathroom and cradled the Pokémon in one arm as carefully as he could to grab some towels. After placing the towels on the countertop and the Pokémon on top of them, Robert took off his gloves and got ready to apply basic first aid. If he didn’t hurry, the poor thing would bleed out before Delilah could return.

Sasha walked into the room shortly after, covering her mouth as she gasped.

“Grandpa! Are you okay? Are you hurt? You have blood on you! MOO-”

The teen unleashed a barrage of questions, but Robert cut her off.

“It’s not mine, I’m fine but there’s no time. Go to my bathroom and grab my medical kit!”

Sasha glanced at the brown mass of fur on the counter.

“Grandpa, did you…. hurt that eev- “

Robert cut her off again.

“NOW Sasha!”

The blonde 15-year-old clamped her mouth shut and hurried away.

Robert turned his attention to the creature before him and began to rinse out the area around the gash with water. Taking great pains to only use a little at a time and a comb to pull away any dirt and grime that had accumulated around it. He then used a washrag to gently wipe away the surface of the jagged gash, causing it to bleed more.

“Hang in there little guy,” Robert murmured.

Each movement across the tender area elicited small whines from the small fox. As unconscious as it was, it was reacting to pain. This was promising, pain meant life. It would have been far more worrying if his actions went with no response.

A moment later Sasha returned with the kit and eyed her grandfather’s handiwork. Robert began dressing the wound as she began her relentless torrent of questions once more.

“Grandpa, did you hurt her?” Concern was evident on her face and her tone of voice.

“No, sweetie, I didn’t,” he replied. Robert didn’t apply any medicine in case of it getting in the way of the doctor later. Taking a roll of gauze from the kit, he began to wrap her haunch tightly in order to stem the bleeding.

“What happened to her?”

“I think those wild pokémon were hunting her.”

Robert paused for a moment and turned to look at her.

“Sasha, do you know what pokémon this is?”

“Yeah! That’s an Eevee! They’re an endangered species! Do you think she’s wild?”

“I don’t know yet sweetie. We’ll know more when the doctor gets here.” Robert sighed. 

It was obvious what question would be coming next. Sasha watched as her grandfather kept binding the wound tight in an attempt to stifle the bleeding. It didn’t take long before her desire overcame her reason.

“C-“ Sasha hesitated. “Can we keep her?”

Robert took a deep breath and finished binding Eevee’s leg, using some tape to hold the gauze in place. He knew this question had to be answered carefully. He couldn’t allow a pokemon to be forced into servitude in his own home.

“I’m afraid that’s not up to us. This Eevee is wild and probably has a family to go home to.” Robert carefully laid the Eevee onto the cushioning before looking Sasha in the eye.

“Think about it for a minute. What right do you have to claim another living creature, as intelligent as you or I, as your own?”

“That's not fair grandpa, there's plenty of pokemon who aren’t as smart as us.”

Robert frowned. “Perhaps, but the principle applies. I know you kids these days want to challenge gyms and compete but capturing wild pokémon without their consent is wrong…” Robert paused and leaned down and began to softly run his fingers through eevee’s fur on her flank. “Look, we can talk about this later.”

Sasha stood in silence for a few moments. Robert was right, but Sasha was eager for a pokémon to call her own.

“Is something wrong grandpa?”

“Keep an eye on her for me. She needs to be carried in something and I need to call the PokéCenter before your mother gets there.”

Robert strode out of the room, leaving Sasha alone with the eevee. Taking a few steps closer, Sasha wanted to get a better look at her. Eevee’s fur was the standard brown, but dirty in most areas. The white tufts of fur around her throat were splattered with mud and her own blood. Sasha’s throat felt tight.

 _"Poor thing. I bet a heal ball would bring her back from the brink."_ Sasha thought to herself.

A small groan escaped from its small frame. Regret hit her like a punch to the gut. How could she covet a pokémon suffering like this? Her grandfather was right, forcing a pokémon into a ball in this condition would likely guarantee a successful capture, but it wouldn’t be right. Besides, a Heal ball would likely only mend the injuries to a certain extent. They weren’t built like a healing machine and even those couldn’t restore lost nutrients from blood loss.

Robert returned, a small cardboard box in one arm and an even smaller blanket in the other. He shooed his granddaughter aside and lined the box with both the towels and blanket. Robert carefully picked up the Eevee and placed her inside the improvised bedding. After making sure Eevee wasn’t lying in the box awkwardly he turned to Sasha.

“If she wakes up, don’t go near her okay? She’s gonna be scared to wake up in an unfamiliar area with us around.”

“It’s just an eevee and its leg is all wrapped up like a mummy. What could it possibly do?” Sasha laughed.

Robert glowered at her. “Don’t they teach you anything in that school? Any pokémon in existence can hurt someone. They are called **_wild_ ** for a reason.”

Seeing her grandfather was serious, Sasha relented.

“Okay I’ll be careful, now where are we taking her?”

“We’ll keep her in this box for now and I’ll take her to the living room. I need you to go get that big folding table I keep in the closet and bring it in there. The doctor will need a workspace,” Robert explained.

“Does the Goldenrod PokéCenter even do house calls?”

“Talk later, table now please, Sasha.”

Sasha let out a sigh and left. Robert gingerly picked up the box and carried it to the living room as Sasha finished setting up the table. It was large enough for two or three people, plenty of space for the doctor to perform an examination. After setting the box down, Robert looked down at his amateur bandaging. It was extremely slow, but he could see extremely small red splotches beginning to form down the length of where the cut was. His eyes wandered up and down the Pokémon’s coat, looking for any other injuries he might have missed. He didn’t even have to ask as Sasha had already snuck off to the kitchen and had come back with a small ice pack. After cautiously taking her from the box onto the table, Sasha used one hand to cradle the eevee’s head, and the other to hold the compress to the side of its head.

“That’s my girl,” Robert praised her with a smile.

“Oh, hush grandpa, it's common sense to put ice on swelling.”

Robert turned to face the window. The trip to and from Goldenrod takes at least an hour and it had already been over half an hour since Delilah had left. Taking that into account, he wagered it would be another half hour or so before his daughter would return. As Robert turned back to face Sasha and the eevee, he froze. One eye was covered with the pack but the other was wide open and flashing with fear and confusion.

Eevee had woken up.


	2. Empathy

Slowly her senses began to return to her, pain at the forefront of her mind. Eevee’s limbs felt as though there were weights tied along their length; most concerning was the one that refused to move at all. As her hearing returned, muffled noises became much clearer. Voices were speaking around her, but they didn’t belong to any of the few pokémon she had acquainted herself with in the forest. It wasn’t until an icy sensation that soothed her head did she finally snap to reality, granting a degree of clarity she sorely needed. The cold but easing weight sat upon her cheek with thin appendages wiggled beneath her opposite side. She dared not move in such a precarious position.

Opening her eye, Eevee took in her surroundings. It was clear that she was no longer outdoors. The darkness outside the window was a stark contrast to the light she found herself in. A human, and an old one at that, stood next to the window looking outside. Her heart nearly froze when it dawned on where she was.

“ _They took me inside their home!”_ She began to panic. _“What do they want with me??”_

Eevee began looking around for somewhere to flee, but found none. As she dismissed the notion of immediate escape, she began to weigh her options. Ideally, she could break the window and flee through it, but would her battered body allow her to pull it off? The appendages beneath her wiggled again as the chilled weight on her head shifted positions. Yet another realization struck her, there had to be more than one human. This unseen human held her in place by her head and was holding something chilly against her shut eye and cheek.

“ _I don’t understand… I thought they would kill me,_ _”_ Eevee thought to herself.

None of these humans’ actions made sense to her. It was common logic to most wild pokémon that humans usually slay or enslave trespassers to their territory. Eevee looked back towards the old human and all her current thoughts disappeared as the two locked eyes. The old man smiled at her but made no move towards her, talking to her instead. His voice was rough with age but carried a friendly tone.

“Well, well, well… Welcome back little one.”

Eevee didn’t respond, she didn’t blink, and she didn’t dare move. Eevee had no idea what was going on anymore. A different voice spoke from above her, beyond her line of sight. It was much more feminine and conveyed slight unease. The human’s fingers beneath her stopped moving and the cold pressure alleviated slightly. At a glance, it was obvious she was not in any immediate danger. Keeping her breathing steady, she forced her heart to slow and her body to relax a bit.

“Wait, is she awake?” the voice asked. The old man broke eye contact and looked up.

“Yes hun, no sudden movements, she’s scared.”

The human slowly slid her fingers from beneath Eevee’s head and lifted the compress from her face. The girl took a few steps back and gave Eevee a wide berth as she circled around to join the older man. With the two keeping their distance, Eevee was able to calm down even further and regain some semblance of composure. Eevee was able to get a better look at the two without the girl holding her head in place.

The older man was bald, average height, and dressed in baggy overalls. He was generally unremarkable aside from his sharp blue eyes and kind smile. The girl however was almost his polar opposite. Dressed in frilly black pajamas and her golden blonde hair draping past her shoulders. Her only shared feature with the old man was her eyes, if anything a richer shade of blue due to her young age.

The man took a step closer and knelt down to her eye level on the table; his eyes wandered all over Eevee’s body. Feeling uncomfortable, she let out a hiss. Chuckling, the old man didn’t flinch but made no move to get any closer.

“Oh-hoh! You’re a feisty one!” The man laughed.

“Don’t worry, we aren’t gonna hurt ya, and don’t try to move too much right now,” he continued. “You’ve had one hell of a night, you’re safe now.”

Eevee continued to stare, now dumbfounded at the human’s words. Their actions defied everything she thought she knew instinctively.

“You’re lucky you know, if grandpa hadn’t stopped the bleeding, you’d be a goner by now,” the younger girl added.

Her leg hadn’t stopped throbbing this entire time, but her panic and urge to survey her surroundings drew her attention away from her wounds temporarily. After being reminded of her injuries, she tried to stand up and immediately regretted it; her vision swam as red blotches briefly dotted her vision. From the corner of her eye she could see a hand reaching towards her. Without thinking, she spun her head around and bit into the owner’s forearm. In the middle of her reaction she was able to realize what was happening and held back, her teeth leaving deep indentations without breaking the skin.

“OW! You little rat! I’m only trying to help!” she yelled, clutching her arm to her chest.

The old man reached over, tugged her back, and inspected the bite. Eevee’s eye grew wide as she felt the gravity of what she had done. Eevee’s ears drooped to the back of her head as she shied away as best she could. If the man’s words could be taken at face value, they were her saviors and she had attacked his family. Biting her lip, she awaited punishment.

“I told you, no sudden movements. You reached out to her and got what you deserved,” the man chided.

“But grandpa!” she protested. “I-“

The girl’s words were caught in her throat as she caught a quick glare from the old man.

The man patted her on the back as he released her arm... “You’ll be fine. Look, you’re not even bleeding. Just say you're sorry and go to your room.”

“I’m sorry Eevee… That was careless of me,” the girl apologized sulkily.

The exchange bewildered Eevee. She bit the girl and _SHE_ was the one being apologized to? In the human world she knew heard of, such an act was considered unforgivable. Eevee didn’t get a chance to respond as the girl walked out of the room shortly after. Guilt pecked at her mind as the elderly man spoke up.

“Oh, you don’t know my name yet! My name is Robert! My rude granddaughter is Sasha, and my daughter is Delilah. Delilah isn’t here right now ya see, she’s fetching you a doctor.”

Suspicion began to mount in the back of her mind. If she became healthy again, would these humans capture her and force her to obey them? Eevee lifted her head and once again tried to look at her bound leg. Robert made no move to stop her, instead choosing to give her a warning.

“Hey girl, don’t mess with them bandages. They’re the only thing keepin’ you from bleedin’ out right now. I ain’t a professional but, I did my best there.”

The effort sent a spider web of pain throughout her chest, her cracked ribs groaning from the strain. Eevee gasped and laid back down. Looking back at Robert, she noticed he had lost his smile. His friendly demeanor changed into one of concern. Raising one hand, he held it in the air.

“I’m gonna to touch you, is that alright?” he asked. “Need to see where you’re hurtin’.”

It was obvious that he was going to, regardless of her decision, so she nodded. Slowly his hand reached down and used two fingers to softly touch her flank in the same location as Sasha had. Instantly, she squirmed and hissed at his touch, the mere brush alone caused her pain to flare.

Robert frowned at once, her reaction halting his movements.

“Looks like you might have some broken ribs there.”

Eevee rolled her eye and for the first time responded aloud.

“Oh, you think so?” she spouted.

The pokémon and human language barrier lost her words, but her actions were enough to get the message across.

“Oh! And sassy too!” Robert laughed as Sasha returned.

Not getting the same enjoyment out of the situation, Eevee just laid her head back down and flicked an ear in Sasha’s direction. The ice pack had melted as it sat unused and Sasha had just returned with a fresh one. After her last interaction with the pokémon, she was much more slow with her movements as she placed the ice on Eevee’s cheek while Robert sat on the couch.

“Eevee, you just take it easy and rest, you hear?” Robert began.

“Delilah shouldn’t be too much longer and hopefully you’ll be fixed up soon.”

After a few awkward minutes, Robert shooed Sasha to go back to bed. With Sasha gone, she was left without the soothing relief of the ice pack. It didn’t take long for the familiar throbbing to regain its strength as her own heartbeat worked against her.

Inadvertently yawning, Eevee laid her head down and began to ignore the old man as well. All things considering, this was the safest she could be as far as she could tell. With any luck he would keep to his word and she could leave as soon as she would be able to. She didn’t realize at the time that her “help” had arrived as she let fatigue take her back to sleep.

* * *

Robert sat patiently in the living room as he watched Delilah and the doctor approach the front door. Robert groaned to himself as he watched the doctor enter the living room, he was a shorter man, looking not much older than Sasha. He was sporting a pair of almost comically oversized glasses and lab coat, complete with blonde disheveled hair. If this situation were anything but serious, Robert would more than likely laugh at his absurd appearance.

Stepping forward, Robert greeted his odd guest.

“Thanks for coming on short notice and so early in the morning, doc. It’s a pleasure to meet you, I’m Robert,” Robert said while extending his hand.

Clasping Roberts hand firmly, the doctor replied. “It’s my pleasure! I understand a wild pokémon is wounded? I also have been told that it’s outside its natural habitat?”

“Yeah, it’s an eevee from what my granddaughter told me.”

As he pulled his hand free, Robert noticed the business card that had been slipped into his hand. It was made of paper that had been laminated with a photo of him on its surface. It read: Office of Dr. Gene Bolton, General Pokémon Medical Practitioner. Beneath the title and name listed his contact information as well as the Goldenrod PokéCenter address. While slipping the card into his wallet, Robert looked at the doctor and noticed how light he was traveling.

“Hey doc, you sure you got everything you need there?” Robert asked, gesturing to the case.

“Of course! I have my limitations of course but I should have everything I need!” the doctor replied, tapping the side of his plastic carrying case. It was a simple white case, barely 2x2 feet with a single latch. It’s only defining features were a small PokéCenter logo on its latch and a pokéball keychain that dangled freely on its side.

“If you’ll excuse me, I would like to get started. It looks like it’s in rough shape and I need to make sure it isn’t bleeding internally,” the doctor said while pointing to the sleeping pokémon.

“Yeah, **_She_ ** has had a rough night,” Robert agreed.

As Gene began to perform a physical examination, Robert filled Gene in on what had happened and what he had found himself. The young doctor quickly but carefully examined each area that Robert had mentioned. After succeeding in probing the areas that had previously proven to be painful to the touch, Robert felt some respect to the young man. Not a single time during his physical did the eevee so much as stir.

After some time, Gene finished his inspection of his patient, he pulled out a small pad and a Pokéball with the PokéCenter logo on it. Robert figured the logo was standard at this point and looked on as he began scribbling notes onto his pad.

“What did you find doc?” Robert asked as his curiosity got the better of him.

“I was just checking her muscles, she seems malnourished,” Gene replied as he began to pull out various other tools and set them around his patient. Robert noticed the young man seemed to be in a slightly sour mood but didn’t want to interrupt.

“In here is my Rotom, a pokémon capable of possessing electronics and enhancing their features,” he explained as he pointed to the pokéball.

“With this pad here and my Rotom, I can do x-rays, various scans, as well as monitor the vitals of most pokémon I’m working with. I beg your pardon but I need to work fast just in case this pokémon’s injuries have internal bleeding.”

Robert nodded and sat on the couch, unsure why the doctor was already in a foul mood. While Gene set up, he heard the doggy door flap open and close. It struck him that this entire time that Bones was nowhere to be found. Leaning towards the hallway he gave a low whistle. A quick bark and the scampering of claws on the floor revealed the orange canine barreling into the room, his bushy tail bouncing back and forth with each stride.

“Where the heck were you boy?” Robert asked. It wasn’t like him to ignore Delilah’s instructions.

“He was making patrols around the house dad,” Delilah answered for Bones, making Robert jump in his seat.

“ Son of a bi-… Dammit girl, don’t sneak up on me like that.” Robert said scowling, readjusting himself in his seat. He could hear the young man snicker as he was facing away; Robert ignored him.

“Why didn’t you come in through the front door?”

Delilah only cracked a grin and walked to her faithful pup, rubbing his ears.

“Don’t get all mad. I didn’t mean to. Besides, Bones here was doing his job as our guard dog. I went out back to check on him.”

The canine thumped his foot on the floor as she rubbed his sweet spots, giving Robert a smug look.

“Yeah, I know hun. Just wish he would let me know before he runs off. You know I get worried when he’s outside alone at night in these woods. Just look at that eevee.” Robert sighed, ignoring him while waving towards the other pokémon.

“Oh, he can handle himself. After all, his best traits are how strong and tough he is. Head to bed, Bones.” Delilah chuckled as she headed towards the kitchen after waving in the direction of her room.

Robert watched the dog trot into the hallway and enter Delilah’s room.

“Do you boys want some coffee?” Delilah asked as she poked her head around the corner.

“OH, yes! Thank you very much! I like mine black!” Gene said happily before returning his attention to eevee. Obliviously to the doctor, Robert and Delilah cringed at his request.

Robert got up and pulled a chair over to the side to watch the doctor, impressed by his dedication to his craft. He was holding the pad over the pokémon as it scanned her. Without looking over, the doctor kept an eye on the pad as it poured information at an incredible speed, as well as display the skeletal structure of the eevee. With a frown, the doctor paused for a moment before continuing as he addressed Robert.

“You know, if you had just captured her, I could have used my portable healing machine. It has a capacity of only a single Pokéball at a time and only holds enough juice for one session, but it would have been much faster,” The doctor said to Robert.

“I didn’t know such a thing existed, however, I’m not a trainer. Even if I was, I don’t agree with catching something without its permission.”

The doctor laughed softly. “Well, that’s one way of thinking I suppose.”

“But consider this,” he continued as he activated his pokéball, releasing his assistant. “Capturing a pokémon to help it isn’t the same as capturing it to add it to a team. You could have captured it, set it to stasis and then always release it when it's healthy again. You could have even brought the used pokéball to a vendor for recycling.”

Rotom buzzed around the room for a moment, seemingly to inspect its surroundings before zipping into the pad. The electronic pad buzzed for a moment before Rotom’s face flashed briefly on its surface. The pad seemed to glow brighter now that the electric type was in control. Shortly after, Gene began sticking small pads to eevee’s chest, digging them deep into her fur so he would hopefully avoid having to shave her.

“Don’t worry, Rotom is collecting data for me to review while I attach these electrodes.”

Robert didn’t bother to reply to him. Instead he was too preoccupied with what Gene had said. After a few moments he spoke up to defend himself, sure he was in the right.

“I see what you’re sayin’ doc, but I would still prefer not to. After all, you’re here aren’t you?”

“Yes, you are correct. I am here… _this time,_ ” Gene swiftly replied as he reached for his pokémon/pad hybrid and began tapping away on its screen with increasing speed.

“However, if I had been unavailable for any reason, this pokémon would have surely died. You handled the first aid yourself; how could you not know how severe these injuries are?” His words became increasingly sharp and contemptful.

Robert looked at the sleeping pokémon on the table, her face still slightly contorted. He knew her injuries were severe, but didn’t understand what Gene had meant. If a doctor couldn’t get here, he could have taken the eevee to Azalea Town.

It was then a series of thoughts struck him: Delilah had taken his truck, Ilex forest was dangerous at night, even if he were escorted by Bones, and although he had bandaged her exterior wounds, he had not taken account that she could have been bleeding internally. In his mind he was doing what he believed what was right, but in reality, Robert was taking a very unnecessary risk.

Robert slumped in his chair slightly, visibly defeated. He leaned forward and put his head into his hands as he took in what could have happened.

“ _Damn it, he’s right. We_ **_should_ ** _have put her in a ball when we found her,”_ Robert thought to himself, remembering the small lecture he gave Sasha. _“Guess Sasha would have been half right in this case.”_

He made a mental note to correct his previous lecture to her in the morning.

Robert rubbed his eyes before sitting back up, his lack of sleep beginning to catch up to him. Delilah returned with their beverages, distributing them before taking hers off of the wide plate she had carried them in on. The two men thanked her for the treat and fell silent again. After a few awkward moments, Delilah spoke up to break the silent atmosphere that had taken root.

“Dr. Bolton, I understand you’re upset, but try to understand that this all happened very fast. We just didn’t have the time to think of everything. I had just woken up myself and didn’t think of it either; things could’ve gone much smoother if we just went to the pokémon center in the first place.”

After rummaging through his equipment case again, the doctor pulled out another, smaller, case held shut by an electronic lock. Snapping his fingers, the Rotom in the pad moved to the lock with a low zipping noise. A moment later and Rotom unlocked it for Gene before returning to the pad.

Gene took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose as he let out a sigh.

“You misunderstand, Ms. and Mr. Reed; I am not upset with your decisions, I am simply informing you of what would have been the better course of action, in case a similar event were to happen in the future; you are living next to Ilex Forest after all.”

Pulling out three differently colored vials from the smaller case, he began to draw a small amount of fluid from each of them with a syringe before setting it down onto the table. The fluid in the syringe seemed to move on its own accord slightly as its color changed. After a few moments, the liquid settled into a bright yellow as it ceased its changes.

“So, no, I’m not blaming you or your father. I think you are wonderful people for going so far for a wild pokémon. If anything, I’m frustrated with the limited support I’m only allowed to give wild pokémon on a house call. If it were officially caught, I could have simplified this process without having to follow these restrictive procedures...but you are correct, taking this pokémon to the treatment center would be the most efficient method of seeking care.”

“Good, now that’s settled, but what exactly do you mean limited support? Why can’t you treat eevee the same as my growlithe?” Delilah asked as she walked to the couch to sit down.

“As I said, I could have just used the machine, however, she has no pokéball. I can assume that since I made it here with no issue, putting her in one would conflict with your beliefs,” He finished as he gestured to his case.

Gene sipped his coffee before picking up his needle. After a careful inspection, he gave its needle a quick flick. Robert and Delilah exchanged a worried glance as the doctor turned back to Eevee.

“Don’t worry, this is a cocktail of a mild anesthetic, harvested Ditto cells, some pain killers, and antibiotics. These will keep eevee from waking up as I work, encourage cell regeneration and help fight off any current infections that may try to set in,” The doctor explained, inserting the needle into the pokémon’s thigh. After placing the used equipment into a small hazmat bag, he turned back to face the two.

“Aside from the rare allergic reaction, there has been minimal side effects no different than human medicines to prepare for surgeries but it will take a minute or so to kick in since an eevee’s metabolism will attempt to process it, so in the meantime, I would like to ask for a favor while we wait,” he said as he pulled a folded piece of paper from his breast pocket and handed it to Robert.

“If it’s reasonable, sure,” Robert replied as Delilah nodded from her seat.

“Great!” Gene beamed. “Now as I said before, I’m limited to what I can do to help a wild pokémon so I would like to ask for you to join a program the regional champion implemented himself. In cases like this where a pokémon requires medical attention but is wild, we ask for volunteers to assist by caring for the pokémon in question until it is healthy or leaves on its own accord.”

“What’s the catch?” Robert asked, crossing his arms.

His smile grew wider as he looked Robert in the eyes.

“The only _catch,_ Mr. Robert, is you or your daughter will have an extra mouth to feed. Being wild may bar this pokémon from the standard healthcare practices that Pokémon Center’s usually provide, but this program will cover any future house calls and costs of medicine for the bare minimum of four months.”

“We’ll have to talk about it,” Robert answered. The attitude the doctor had shown him so far also discouraged the idea of wanting to do him any favors; nonetheless Robert liked the ideals of the program.

“Of course. However, before I begin, I must warn you of this eevee’s current condition. As you had guessed: she has swelling from blunt force trauma, her hind leg has a torn vastus lateralis, and two cracked ribs. However, she is also suffering from malnutrition and will require a diet to regain the muscle mass and body fat she is lacking,” Gene explained. “I can immediately help with her leg and swelling, but her ribs are damaged too close to her thoracic vertebrae and will need to heal on their own. As this eevee is a wild pokémon, I require permission from the homeowner to operate in your home. This is mostly permission to operate here despite it not being your pokémon and that you’re willing to let me take her to an appropriate care center should you decide not to enroll into our program once the procedure is complete.

As Gene finished speaking, the pad he had been using floated into the air and came to a stop in front of Robert. Robert looked at the doctor skeptically.

“Don’t worry Mr. Reed, you have a month after signing to back out of the program if you wish to.”

Taking it from the air, Robert signed its surface with his finger before releasing it. Satisfied with the proper paperwork out of the way, the doctor began to store his unneeded tools before producing new ones, an assortment of scalpels, needles, surgical pliers, etc.

“ _Hell, how does he fit so much stuff in there?”_ Robert thought to himself. As much as he wanted to ask, he knew that the young man didn’t have the time to answer such a question.

“That’s everything, I'll get started then.” The doctor said. “I need as little disturbances as possible as I have to stitch together her muscle before the Ditto cells regenerate it as is..”

Not completely understanding, Robert motioned for Delilah to follow him to the front porch, leaving the doctor to his work. In his hand was the application to the program.

After stepping outside, Robert looked to the sky. Dawn had begun to arrive, the warm colors of the sun slowly driving away the night sky as it rose. Living next to Ilex forest, Robert had the luxury of witnessing the morning sky without the sun directly shining on his house during the early hours of the morning. As Delilah shut the door to the house behind her, Robert turned to face her.

“Well? Do you think we should do it?” Robert asked while handing the paper to Delilah.

She furrowed her brow as she began reading through it. Not giving an answer immediately, she folded her arms. It was clear that the question had an obvious answer to her.

“I don’t see why not, Dad. If all we are responsible for is food, I can just pick up some extra shifts at work,” she offered.

“Money isn’t the issue hun, time is. Do you think one of us will be around at all times to care for a hurt pokémon? This isn’t Bones we’re talking about, one of us needs to be here to take care of its needs.”

Shaking her head, Delilah pointed at the paper.

“I think this is a good chance to do some good, Dad, besides it’s not like Sasha can’t help. All she can think of is getting her starter and going to challenge the gym circuit.”

Robert ran his hand over his scalp.

“Well… She may be my granddaughter but you’re her mother. If you think we can do this, then let’s do it.”

Delilah beamed at him, proud as can be.

“If anything, this could help Sasha learn to care for a pokémon besides Bones. She’s still in trainer’s school after all and could use the experience,” she added.

Robert took the paper back from his daughter to look over again. Aside from the PokéCenter logo, it listed the benefits of becoming a volunteer and an “Inquire Within” on it. It being just a flier, Robert just folded it up again and put into his breast pocket of his overalls.

Gene’s words echoed in his mind.

 _“If anything, I should do this because I owe her,”_ Robert thought; a somber expression was on his face as he turned away from Delilah.

“Well that settles it, we can talk to him when he’s done,” he stated flatly. “but on the condition the eevee agrees to this arrangement. We aren’t slavers.”

Delilah headed to her room to nap for a few hours as Robert sat back down onto the couch. Realizing the tv wasn’t an option, Robert pulled a book from his end table and began to read. The cover of the book was well worn and the spine was beginning to fail. On the cover the title read in a simple font: “The Life, Love, and Loss of a Rose.” As he read, the world around him all but ceased to exist as he immersed himself within its pages until the doctor finished working.

* * *

Muffled sounds could be heard as Eevee woke up yet again. Light was streaming into the room from the window, a sign that nearly a half a day had passed since she had last woken up. The events of the previous day replayed in her mind; her home invasion, her fight, her saviors…everything had happened so fast, she could scarcely believe she had survived.

“Well now, look who’s awake!” a voice called out.

Eevee shook her head, she couldn’t get rid of this foggy feeling over her head. It clouded her thoughts and left her feeling both tired and well rested; the most bizarre state of mind she had experienced so far. After failing to be free of this uncomfortable sensation, she looked around to take in her surroundings sluggishly. Robert and a man she didn’t recognize were standing next to her.

“Hello Eevee, I’m a doctor from the pokémon center in Goldenrod city,” the man introduced himself.

“Ms. Reed came to the PokéCenter to pick me up after Mr. Reed called me. Now, I’ve already gone through the operation details with Mr. Reed but I have some simple questions for you.”

Eevee simply nodded, wanting to know what had happened to her while she slept. Stealing a quick glance at Robert, she saw him standing off to the side scribbling away on multiple sheets of paper. She tried to get his attention but her throat was too rough and her voice failed her. Taking notice, the doctor quickly called him over to stand next to them before continuing on.

“You’re a very lucky pokémon, Eevee. You have severe bruising in your periorbital skin, two ribs cracked near your spinal column, two additional bruised ribs, and the muscle tissue in your vastus lateralis received severe lacerations.”

The doctor looked up from his notepad, making sure he still had her attention.

“Your leg was the most alarming to be sure, but didn't match up with the claw patterns of any Patrat or Watchog that I know of. I need to know Eevee, did another pokémon wound your leg?”

Eevee shook her head, blaming her assailants didn’t seem to make any sense. Shortly after she shook her head she remembered what _had_ bit into her; the nails in the fence she had broken through were the likely culprit. The doctor moved onto his next question, one she feared.

“Do you remember what **_could_ ** have caused it?” he asked.

Eevee vigorously shook her head, causing a wave of nausea to assail her. Eevee kept her head movements to a minimum as this game of twenty questions continued. The doctor asked her yes or no questions about her life, where she came from, and how often she ate.

After roughly an hour of the tedious exchange, the doctor finally began to bring things to a close.

“Okay, I think Robert has a final question for you before I leave,” he said, waving Robert closer and stepping back.

The old man squatted down to be the same height as her.

“Alright girl, I know you’re tired and I promise we’ll move you to a better spot to sleep soon but I have an offer for you. You’re a wild pokémon and normally can’t get help from the PokéCenter if it’s not an emergency, but if you stay here until you get better, we can get other help for you no problem; but you see, I need to know if _you’re_ okay with staying here...”

Eevee blinked a couple times, perplexed. This human was offering to nurse her back to health and _still_ hadn’t asked anything in return, not that she could have given anything but herself.

“Why are you doing this? I don’t understand…” she nervously asked, a combination of suspicion and frustration began to bud in the back of her mind.

The doctor and Robert looked at each other, lacking the means to communicate verbally, her words fell on deaf ears.

“Little one, I need you to nod or shake your head. I can’t understand you,” Robert said.

Frustrated, Eevee laid there and thought hard about what this meant. If she accepted, she could easily flee from them as long as they didn’t force her into a pokéball. Becoming a slave to a human repulsed her fiercely, but the humans so far haven’t even done anything indicating that.

 _If they pull some sort of stunt, I can always just run away. I broke through their fence once; I can do it again,_ Eevee thought. _Especially if I’m at full strength._

She looked up to the expectant but patient eyes of Robert and nodded. Immediately a wide smile broke out across his face as she did and rubbed her head. His hands were rough to the touch but it was obvious he was trying to be as gentle as he could in his excitement. Eevee briefly thought back to the lecture he had given Sasha about touching her without warning or permission and felt conflicted. On one hand she didn’t want the old man touching her, but on the other she knew he meant no harm and had gone out of his way to help her in her time of need. Her suspicion and anxiety melted away as she came to her conclusion. Satisfied with her answer, Robert turned to the doctor and began to ask questions about how to care for her.

 _Well he certainly_ **_seems_ ** _like he doesn’t have any plans to keep me here at least…_

As the two men chatted away and the last of the grogginess began to fade, Eevee felt her stomach beginning to stir. Between her failed food search and being unconscious, Eevee’s appetite had caught up to her. Hiding her face into the small box corner, she waited for the inevitable to happen. As if on cue, her belly let out a rumble, vocalizing its need to be filled at the cost of her pride.

The two stopped talking abruptly and stared at her for a moment before continuing on; Eevee assumed they were ignoring what they had heard until she felt a light tapping on her ear. Looking up Eevee saw Robert holding something in the palm of his hand, a small light brown disc that smelled of berries. What berries were used to make this confection were a mystery to her but her appetite won out over reason as she snatched it from his hand. For a moment, she wondered where Robert had pulled the cookie from, but quickly decided not to pursue that line of thought and continued eating.

While she chewed on her snack, she overheard the doctor giving Robert tips on what to feed her and when he should do so. Many of the words were lost on her but she could tell at the very least she might not receive a hearty meal for quite some time. Sadly, the cookie only succeeded in taking the edge off her hunger.

Licking her chops, she noticed that the doctor began to pack up his belongings. If he was leaving, she wanted to thank him and say goodbye. Thinking quickly, she began tapping her paw onto her box/bed while calling out to him. Robert followed her line of sight to the doctor and let out a cough in his direction.

“Wait! You’re leaving already?” Eevee barked. Her heart sank, this human was the one directly responsible for setting her onto the road to recovery and, like Robert, had asked nothing in return. She owed him a debt of gratitude at very least since she didn’t even know his name.

“Come here! You at least need to say good-bye!” she barked again, this time trying to convey a sense of urgency.

The doctor continued packing while he asked Robert what was going on.

“I don’t know doc, she just won’t stop staring at you,” Robert curtly replied.

Eevee never broke her stare as he approached, eyeing him expectantly.

“Was there something else?” the doctor asked, reaching down towards her.

Catching him by surprise, Eevee leaned over and nuzzled his hand. With no actual method to communicate with him, she did the only thing she could think of, being the one to initiate contact. The doctor’s face broke out into a goofy grin as he moved his hand to her right ear, giving it a good massage. His hands moved throughout her skull with incredible dexterity, a world apart from Robert’s attempt at affection, all while still avoiding the bruising around her face and eye.

“Thank you for saving me,” she purred, becoming lost in the euphoria as he switched ears.

 _A girl could get used to this,_ she thought, genuinely pleased and thankful for his help.

Her words didn’t need to be heard; her actions were enough to get her point across.

“I became a doctor to help pokémon that were in your position. Try sending some of that gratitude to the ones who actually saved you and will be taking care of you.” He grinned while shifting his hand, massaging her other ear. When his hand finally pulled away, the pleasure left with it, Eevee let out a short but satisfied sigh.

Eevee settled into a more comfortable position in her makeshift bedding; she resigned herself to whatever future came. Having escaped death and found herself into a warm home, as suspicious as she still was, was more luck than she had ever dreamed possible. 

Delilah quickly walked from her room and hopped into the truck, presumably to bring the doctor back home or to his workplace. Robert turned to Eevee and told her that he would be right back, walking out to the truck to talk to his daughter.

The doctor was last to leave, giving pause to inspect his belongings. As he headed for the door, Eevee gave one last sigh. The only thing on her mind was how to move forward with these people, the humans that defied all she had ever known.

“Well, they say life sucks and then you die right? What do you call this then?” Eevee murmured to herself.

Without missing a beat, the young man turned around and gave her an inquisitive stare.

“I would call it a second chance my dear,” he answered matter-of-factly before heading out the door, leaving Eevee too stunned to reply.

  
Authors note:

If you're reading this, then i wanna thank you! this chapter was kinda difficult to write as i originally didn't want to have Gene as a main character and to be honest, i still don't. HOWEVER he will still make more appearances in the future for an idea i have for a subplot that will also affect the main story i have planned. i hope that in the future, if you're still reading, you'll like what i have planned. Hope to see you in Chapter 3: Special Needs.


	3. Special Needs

**_Eevee_ **

Eevee laid in her new bedding, fully taking advantage of its gentle and warm embrace. Her old bedding of leaves and sticks were quite pitiful in comparison to what she had been given. Robert had returned with the small bed the same afternoon he had taken the doctor back to the hospital, much to her appreciation.

Quite a few days had passed since the attack that left her bedridden. As each day passed, she spent them observing the humans and their daily routines. Until now, Robert had been her main caretaker, quickly coming up with an amusing method of communication with her: a handful of small cubes with assorted colors. Each color with a dedicated meaning were placed next to her bed for Robert’s routine check ups. It was rudimentary but effective nonetheless; red if she was in pain, blue if she was thirsty, green if she was hungry and so on.

Occasionally,in the afternoons, Delilah would lend a hand whenever she had the free time. Eevee noticed that quite frequently Delilah would be out of the house for the better part of the day, leaving around the same time as Sasha. Unlike her mother, Sasha would almost always return far sooner in the afternoon.

As Sasha left each day, Eevee noticed an orange furred pokemon follow her out the door. Frequently, the Growlithe would peek in her direction before they left. Eevee guessed that the pokemon wasn’t native to the Ilex forest as she had never seen any pokemon like him. The Growlithe seemed to want to speak to her, but was always unable to as Sasha would be in a hurry to who knows where.

However, today the routine was broken. Robert had explained to Eevee that, for the day, Sasha would be the one to keep an eye on her. Anxious, she felt a shiver run down her spine, giving her goosebumps that caused her fur to stand on end briefly.

 _“Well this is going to be awkward… but it was going to happen eventually I guess,”_ Eevee thought to herself. Their next interaction had been something she had been dreading.

She remembered how she had bitten Sasha the other day, but her victim had been harshly scolded instead of her. Regret and shame nagged at the back of her mind. If Sasha ignored her all day, or even retaliated, Eevee couldn’t hold it against her. All she could hope to do for now was to sit in her bed and wait for the day to end, that or pray for either Robert or Delilah to come home.

The sound of footsteps caught her attention. Perking her to their direction, Eevee saw the usual sight of Sasha preparing to leave with her canine companion. Donning a simple dress, Eevee realized that she intended to leave her alone, for how long, she didn’t know. Eevee felt slightly disappointed and yet somehow relieved. Noticing that they had an audience, the canine scampered towards her with excitement. 

“Hey! You’re awake! Nice to finally meet you! I’m Bones!” he introduced himself, his tail wagging in a blur of white fur. It was obvious he had been waiting for the moment to finally approach her. His words came quickly and with much zeal.

“Haha, nice to meet you too. I’m an eevee,” she responded, giving him a small smile while straining herself into a sitting position. It was nice to finally have someone to actually communicate properly with, even if he was a bit more energetic than she would have liked.

“I know _what_ you are, what’s your name?” the pup asked, his tail swishing back and forth.

“I don’t have one. I’ve never needed one,” she replied.

If anything, having a name was a foreign concept to her. Wild pokemon, friend or foe, rarely had a name. The few that did have a name were released pokemon holding lingering attachments to their former humans.

“Well that’s weird, everyone ne-“ 

“Bones, can you hurry up? We need to get going,” Sasha interrupted, impatience creeping into her tone.

For a few moments, Bones turned to look at Sasha. Ears flat and tail drooping, he whimpered until Sasha’s demeanor softened.

“Fine... Just please hurry.” She sighed, caving to the pup.

Instantly, the dog turned back to face Eevee, his smug grin undermining his performance. It dawned on her that the pup was a lot smarter than he seemed. Glancing in Sasha’s direction, she saw her leaning on the wall next to the door. Eevee quickly brought her attention back to her new friend.

“You sure it’s okay to just ignore her like that?”

“What? OH, her! Yeah she’ll be fine,” the dog assured her, “She’s not my master, she’s not even a trainer either.” The dog’s tail began its wagging again in earnest, clearly enjoying the attention.

“I mean, if you say so,” She paused. “Where are you two heading anyway? Will you be gone long?” 

If she thought the dog was excited before, she had no words for the outburst of energy she was confronted with now.

“Oh! I’m going with her as a stand in pokemon! Sasha is going to become a trainer soon and needs all the practice she can get before she can be issued a trainer card!” the dog explained proudly, his words picking up speed as he went on.

“If she does well, she will be issued a starter pokemon and begin her gym circuit!”

Eevee kneaded her paws for a second, almost afraid to ask her next question, but was unwilling to end their conversation prematurely. Combined with her desire to know more, she dared to feed his ego and keep pushing.

“So... What’s the gym circuit? And if you’re just helping her, does that mean you’re the only other pokemon in the house?”

Bones didn’t immediately answer. Instead, the pooch stared at her with the same smug expression he had for Sasha. More than anything, Eevee was genuinely surprised that Bones didn’t gush as energetically as he had been.

“If you come with us after you’re better, I’ll explain everything to you,” Bones teased, “I’ve seen you observing the family every chance you get. I know you’re from the forest and you’re used to living in the wild and all, but it's safe here you know. At least much safer than where you used to be at any rate.”

Bones paused to scratch his ear. With a wink, he added, “Unless you’re doing what I think you’re doing and just trying to pick up on a few things the humans do."

Eevee shuddered a bit. She thought she had been discreet, but he clearly had noticed her and even managed to get an accurate assessment of her without her noticing. Deciding that silence was the best answer, she kept quiet as Bones continued.

“Oh, at the very least I'll answer your second question. Yes, I was the only other pokemon in the house until you came along.”

Greatly interested, Eevee listened intently as the pooch continued while he got comfortable; sitting on his haunches.

“I’m sure you’ve figured it out by now, but Delilah is my master. What I bet you _didn’t_ know is that she has raised me since I hatched, but that’s the most you’re going to get out of me today,” he chuckled.

“Oh come on!” Eevee begged. “If you figured me out already, then why do you want to keep me in the dark?”

The pup broke into a fit of laughter before responding. “I don’t! I swear I don’t! You’re too fun to mess with; you’re an open book. Besides, if I told you everything in one day, you’ll be bored tomorrow right?”

Biting her lip out of frustration, Eevee stole another glance in Sasha’s direction. The girl couldn’t possibly understand their conversation in the slightest, but still wore a kind smile for some strange reason. Her smile faded quickly as the two accidentally made eye contact. It had become apparent the smile was for Bones.

Guilt weighed on Eevee as she thought back on her actions leading up this point. In her eyes, she had wronged the young girl and had acted like some sort of spy instead of learning and interacting with the family as a whole..

As irritating as it was, the dog was right. Eevee had an almost innate desire to learn more about her human saviors. Between Robert’s first aid and Delilah's retrieval of the doctor, her preconceived notions and knowledge of human beings were shattered in the face of their selflessness. The void created only served to give birth to her thirst for knowledge. 

“I...” Eevee tried to speak, but her words failed her. She couldn’t, in good conscious, pursue her desire to educate herself anymore. Regardless, Sasha seemed to be doing her best to avoid her and was well within her right to do so. As Eevee came to this conclusion, she snapped back into the moment when Sasha spoke up.

“Bones, I’ll be in my room. Come get me when you’re ready,” said the girl as she grabbed her bag.

Eevee felt guilty as Sasha left the room; the girl was now postponing her plans for the sake of Bones. She understood why she would have a grudge against her, but it hurt regardless.

“I want to go but I think she hates me,” Eevee whispered, her ears drooping.

“Nah, she just doesn’t know how to deal with you, I mean you **_did_ ** bite her after all.” Eevee flinched at his words. “Plus, she feels bad about something else,” Bones replied snickering. 

“Wait, what do you mean?” Eevee asked, confused at the vague response. She couldn’t help but keep looking towards the hallway, secretly hoping Sasha would return.

“Well, the family sometimes forget that I'm not some feral beast and spill their secrets to me. I’m not going to betray their trust so I just can’t say, but just know it was something innocent. She wanted to do it to help you but ended up not pushing it any further than just words...she takes after her grandfather you know, they’re both real softies.”

Eevee dwelled on Bones’ words for a while, unsure how to respond. Bones didn’t pressure her for an answer; simply waiting patiently for her reply. Thankfully, before things could become awkward, she found her words.

“Well, I’ve gotten along quite well with Robert, but I don’t know what to do or say with her. I feel so horrible for what I've done, but I can’t go to her and she won’t even come near me,” Eevee replied, her voice ladened with remorse.

The dog shuffled his paws in place, empathizing with his new friend.

“And if you’re right, she just tried to help me too and instead I just bit her…” Eevee continued, sadness began to creep in alongside guilt as she spoke. 

“Hey, hey, hey... Don’t dwell on it too much. If you really feel that way, then do something about it after you’re better. Okay?” he advised, nudging her paw with his.

Eevee didn’t respond; she could only sit in place and stare at her paws. The effort she put into merely sitting up made her dizzy, a clear indicator that being able to walk normally again wouldn’t happen for quite some time. With all the steps the family had taken to ensure her survival and comfort, it felt insulting to leave things as they were. There had to be a way to connect with Sasha and apologize. 

_“Well, they say you only live once, but here I am. Best make the most of it, right?”_ she thought to herself.

Gathering her resolve, Eevee gritted her teeth as she forced herself to stand. Her chest and back groaned in protest as the movement kindled small amounts of pain spread through her ruined frame. Bones froze in place at her sudden actions, dumbfounded as to why she would dare move in her condition. Reality snapped into place again as Eevee took a step forward, the effort transforming the pain into a full blown inferno. Bones rushed forward, stepping into her path and blocking her from going any further.

“Wait! What are you doing?” Bones exclaimed, worried for her safety. “You’re not ready to move yet!”

“Don’t stop me, Bones. I don’t have the patience to wait, if Sasha won’t come to me then I have to go to her!” she replied, her voice strained from the effort.

Almost at random, spikes of pain spiderwebbed across her chest. Most were sharp, threatening to force her to collapse, but others were intense and dull, trying to steal her breath from her. In an attempt to power through, she focused on her goal and ignored the pain.

“Move, Bones,” Eevee asked.

The canine didn’t even bother to reply. Straightening himself, he towered over her with his height.

“Bones… Please,” Eevee begged. “I know what I’m doing. I need to go see Sasha.”

“No,” he replied swiftly. “You do realize that Sasha is responsible for your health for the day right? If you hurt yourself, you’ll make her **and** the rest of the family look bad. I won’t allow that.”

Eevee took an excruciating step forward, pushing his chest with her forehead. She knew the odds of her being able to overpower a pokemon twice her size in her condition were impossible, but she felt driven into a corner. Panic welled up from within her as she came to terms with her condition.

“Then what do I do…?” she asked, her face muffled in her new friends fur. 

“Rest and recover,” Bones answered matter-of-factly. His blunt reply caused her to take a small step backwards in order to look at him. “Everything else can wait.”

Sighing, the dog rubbed his nose with his paw for a moment before adding.

“Look, while you were sleeping, she kept checking on you nearly every twenty minutes last night... Just be patient. She isn’t going anywhere and neither are you.” 

Agony tore through her maimed frame as she felt her willpower wane its wake. As impatient as she was, she had no choice but to take Bones at his word. Nodding, she obeyed the protective canine; settling back into a comfortable position in her bed. Instantly, the pain from her self-inflicted torment vanished. The echoing remnants of the ordeal left her limbs shaking and weak; she made a mental note to avoid such strenuous actions for now.

The two didn't speak for a short while; Eevee simply followed his gaze as he focused on where Sasha had gone. Bones seemed to be in deep thought. The painstakingly awkward silence was broken when he spoke up. 

“You said you never needed a name, what did you mean by that?” Bones asked, sitting back down next to her bed. He seemed to be more relaxed now as his more friendly aura returned.

“If you take me with you after I'm better, I'll explain it to you,” she teased in response. At the very least, she didn’t want the pup to be at odds with her. After all, Bones was correct. If she was patient, she could make peace with Sasha in the future.

“Ha!” Bones laughed. “Okay, I guess I wasn't being fair. I’ll tell you what, answer my question and I'll answer one of yours. Deal?”

“Deal,” Eevee answered quickly. Rolling onto her good side, she laid down completely as she contemplated how best to answer him. Staring into the ceiling, her eyes wandered for a moment before she replied.

“Well...There’s not a lot to the story. I never knew my parents, I’ve never lived with a human before, and I’ve never exactly had any friends before. This is sort of new to me, you know?”

“I see…” Bones nodded.

“Well, do you have a name you want to be called?” the pup asked.

“Ah ah ah, one question remember?” Eevee playfully chided. “It’s my turn now.”

“Fair enough, what do you want to know?” he asked as his smug grin returned.

A multitude of questions came to mind but she was only able to pick one. Many could easily be answered in time so she decided to go for the obvious.

“Well, since it’s my turn and all… What's Sasha like?”

“I guess it would be better to tell you. From what I’ve seen, you’ll probably try another stupid stunt if I don’t,” he half joked.

Eevee felt her ears go flat at his words. Things felt slightly shaky between them and she wanted to be on good terms with the only other pokemon in the house.

“Sorry about that, I didn’t think things through,” she murmured.

“Don’t worry about it, I was only joking...kinda,” Bones laughed. “Brighten up would ya?”

Eevee fell quiet as she simply had nothing to say.

“Anyway, about Sasha…” Bones started. “She’s a softy like her granddad, but she is quite the anxious type. She doesn’t do well in crowds of people and doesn’t have many friends in school. She is honestly smarter than she gives herself credit, but I can't tell her that myself; most of our conversations tend to be one sided.”

Bones paused to chew on his fur for a moment, trying to rid himself of an itch. The act seemed oddly amusing to her. Finished with the unwanted interruption, Bones eyed Eevee for a moment.

“You know you brought back fleas from the forest right? Annoying little bastards. Now I’ll have to get a damn bath soon and I don't really like water all that much.”

“Oh wow, I’m _so_ sorry about that. I’ll _totally_ make sure to ask the bugs to stay away from you,” Eevee replied snickering.

“Smartass,” Bones said, rolling his eyes. “Where was I….? Oh yes! Sasha can be quite awkward at times with people and new pokemon alike, in fact, she is becoming a trainer in order to build up her own confidence. If she can at least make some headway into the gym circuit, I think she will get her dream job.”

Eevee laid in her bed as Bones finished his spiel, gaining a new understanding and appreciation for the young woman. She noticed the warm glow Bones exuded as he spoke of Sasha. A hint of jealousy tugged at the back of her mind.

 _“It must be nice to have a family huh?”_ Eevee thought to herself before quickly burying the emotion. “You seem to really love these humans don’t you?” she asked.

“Well of course, they’re my family. Delilah and Robert raised me alongside Sasha,” Bones replied.

“Does she have a father?” Eevee asked, curious of the odd number of family members.

“I guess “one question” rule is just out the window huh?” Bones teased back. “All jokes aside, that's something else I can’t say. It’s not a secret, but it’s also just not my place to say.”

Adopting a sullen demeanor, Eevee just nodded. As patient as he had been with her today, she decided not to pry.

“Good. If you’ll excuse me, I think we’ve both kept Sasha waiting long enough. The Trainers School closes in a few hours. She and I need to get some practice today.”

“Wait! At least tell me what you mean by her dream job!” Eevee yelled as the pup made his way to the hallway. At her plea, he paused before disappearing out of sight.

“Nope!” Bones yelled back from the hallway. “Maybe tomorrow!”

Grumbling to herself, Eevee conceded and stared at the ceiling. Being bedridden and ending up alone for any amount of time was painfully boring. The few minutes that passed felt like an eternity to her.

As Bones and Sasha emerged from the hallway, Eevee watched Sasha check her bag once more. The two of them departing was likely to be the last entertaining thing she would see until someone came home.

* * *

**_Bones_ **

Ignoring worried looks from Sasha, Bones stepped onto the field for his next battle. Today had been particularly difficult as upperclassmen were practicing today. With how hard he had been pushing himself, Bone’s fatigue was hard to hide at this point. By the end of his last match, his breathing was becoming labored and his reactions were sluggish, but nothing he couldn’t handle. The brief period of time between matches was his only reprieve as the school’s field referees set up their final match for the afternoon.

Standing at his full height, he measured himself against his next opponent. On the other side of the field stood a Seedot, its round body a little over a foot shorter than him. Without arms to swing or a mouth to even bite with, Bones was concerned for the small acorn pokémon. Behind him, he could hear Sasha call out to him.

“You sure you’re okay Bones?” Sasha asked.

With a quick bark, Bones got into his battle stance. The Seedot stared at him with what he could only assume were his eyes, empty and emotionless. As the referee got into his position to start the match, Bones couldn’t help but feel something off about his opponent.

“Begin!” the referee shouted, tossing his flag into the air.

Taking off like a bullet, Bones made a beeline for his stoic adversary with a Take Down. Crashing into the smaller pokémon, he sent it bouncing backwards. Giving it no time to recover, Bones circled around before giving it another heavy blow. Wincing, Bones could feel the backlash of his reckless moves catching up to him along with his fatigue.

“Okay Bones! Now use Fire spin!” Sasha yelled as Seedot bounced towards the center of the arena. The acorn pokémon felt almost comically helpless to his wicked onslaught.

Flames flickered in his maw as he broke into a full sprint, aiming to run circles around his adversary. Whether or not it realized the danger it was in, the Seedot made no effort to escape the growing fire prison. Rocking itself onto its feet, it resumed its empty stare amid the growing fire storm.

The roar of the flames filled his ears as he kept pushing, coaxing the flames to become increasingly intense. As Bones made his sixth rotation, his determination began to waver. His opponent still had yet to defend itself. Furrowing his brow, he slowed and finally stopped his attack out of concern. Having such a sheer advantage on his opponent made him worry about severely injuring his sparring partner.

As the inferno began to subside, Bones felt the extent of his exhaustion hit him all at once. It took all his effort to even remain on his feet as he took great gulps of air. As powerful as his flames were, they robbed him of a large amount of what air he needed to breathe.

“Bones no! Keep going!” Sasha panicked, drawing his attention.

 _“But…why? I don’t want to kill him,”_ Bones thought to himself, perplexed at Sasha’s commands.

Returning his attention to his enemy, Bones immediately understood her alarm. Seedot’s round surface, charred by his flames, was returning to normal at an incredible pace. With a roar, Bones tried to charge towards his opponent but his limbs were slow to respond.

 _“_ No no no!” he roared

In a last ditch effort to win, Bones launched a salvo of embers at his opponent as he ran. Each fireball missed their mark, only managing to set fire to what little grass remained. The Seedot began to glow a shining white as he drew nearer.

“Now!” commanded its trainer.

With astonishing speed that belied its form, the Seedot launched itself towards him. Clenching his teeth, Bones knew he wouldn’t be able to evade its attack. Twisting sideways, he angled the incoming blow to his broadside. All at once, any breath he had was ripped from his lungs as he felt its hard surface smash into him. The force of the attack spun his body off the field, his limbs flailing wildly as he somersaulted, until he collided into the wall and finally crumpled into a small heap on the floor.

A persistent ringing buzzed in his ears as he tried to open his eyes. Almost in slow motion, the referee was throwing a flag towards the Seedot, as Sasha wrestled with her purse. In a sprint towards him, Sasha could be seen pulling his pokéball free, its white and blue surface glossy from underuse; fear and worry were self-evident on her face.

“Someone notify the medical wing immediately!” the referee yelled as he quickly followed. Dropping to her knees, Sasha dropped everything. Bones felt her hands gently caressing his fur as he heard her stifle a sob.

“Oh Bones… Are you okay?” she asked.

Releasing a low groan, Bones felt his vision fade. Sasha kept barraging him with more questions, but they became garbled as the ringing grew louder. Agony crept into him as the initial shock began to wane. Consciousness slipping from his grasp, Bones watched as Sasha pointed his ball towards him.

* * *

**_Bones_ **

The hum of the medical wings’ healing machine reverberated within his pokéball, rousing him from his slumber. As the thrum of the machine continued, Bones thoughts drifted to the battle that had put him in here. He had been so sure of his victory over the grass pokémon, but he couldn’t understand what had gone wrong.

Almost immediately after the machine finished, Bones forced himself out of the pokéball. The room’s fluorescent lighting blinded him for a moment as he tried to get his bearings. Sitting at the student’s side, Sasha had waited patiently for him to finally return to her. Stretching his limbs, Bones tested his restored body; a habit he had developed in his first year of battle practice.

“Welcome back Bones!” she greeted him with a wave. “You feel better?”

“Much better!” he happily barked to his oblivious friend.

Scampering to her side, Bones couldn’t stop his tail from swinging around in excitement. From what he wagered, Sasha and him had defeated two out of three upperclassmen in their extra matches today and should be receiving high praise. Leaping onto her lap, Bones snickered as she groaned at his sudden weight.

“Oh boy, you’re getting too heavy to just jump on me like that,” she scolded.

As she rubbed his ears, he and Sasha sat in the conference room with relative silence around them. It was only a matter of time until her reviewer would join them. Glancing at Sasha, Bones noticed she was in unusually good spirits as well.

In order to keep everything fair, the school normally assigned battle reviewers at random per day, but Sasha was treated as a special case. More specifically, one of the faculty members took it upon himself to personally review her battles as much as he could. As if on cue, the teacher opened the door and entered the room.

“And the prodigal dick returns,” Bones dryly remarked. It was in these moments that he took advantage of the language barrier between humans and himself. To say the least, the things he tended to say about this man were rarely positive anyway.

While the school itself had no official dress code for its students and employees, this teacher wore virtually the same outfit every time he had seen them after battle. The only difference between his clothes seemed to be colors. This time, the man wore a white tuxedo paired with a burgundy tie. His spiked black hair was kept short and neat at all times as well; a clear indication the man had a flair for his own style.

“Hello again Miss Reed,” he greeted as he took his seat.

“Afternoon Mr. Cotter,” Sasha replied.

A low growl rumbled from his chest; Bones never liked this man. Mr. Cotter tended to be blunt with his words and often had left him pulling Sasha out of depression on more than one occasion over the years. Eyeing him warily, he let out a low growl.

Seemingly unfazed by his warning, Cotter flipped through his papers. Bones could feel Sasha tense up with each glance in their direction. Hopping down onto the floor, he took to his spot next to her leg. With one hand Sasha took to kneading his fur while the other relaxed, a destressing method the two had adopted over the years.

“Well, let’s get started shall we?” Mr. Cotter asked as he closed the folder.

Folding his hands on the table, Cotter's eyes darted between the two for a moment. Bones felt his fur stand on end in apprehension.

“Miss Reed, according to your file, you participated in three extra credit rounds today. Of the three, you managed to lose to an opponent whilst holding a type advantage,” he began. “ While your leading battles were satisfactory, I would prefer to focus on your final battle. If you wish to retain credit for that battle, you must first tell me why you lost. What will you do in the future?”

Bones bristled at the man. His methods were never agreeable to him. Instead of looking at the results in its entirety, Cotter seemed to take joy in pointing out flaws. He was about to bark his protest when Sasha surprised him.

“We both are at fault Mr. Cotter.”

Bewildered, Bones felt the words he had chosen die in his throat. Trepidation took root as he realized what she had meant.

“Oh please, do elaborate,” Cotter gestured.

“In the battle, I didn’t notice the Seedot had Ingrained itself in place during Bones’ Fire Spin. It was only after he ended his attack did I see what was going to happen. After I told him to keep going, he hesitated. My lack of foresight and Bones’ hesitation is what did us in.”

In awe, Bones just stared at Sasha. The girl was speaking with an air of confidence he’d rarely seen from her. A mixture of pride and shame swirled within him as she pointed out their mistakes in the heat of battle. Cotter calmly listened to her, a slight smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. 

“It was a mistake for me to ask for him to use an attack like Fire Spin on a small opponent like Seedot as the flames obscured my vision. It would have been far better to use the type advantage to my favor and just used a more direct approach,” Sasha continued.

By now the faint smile on Cotter’s face had grown into a full on grin. Slightly disturbed, Bones shuddered at the man's creepiness.

“A very good assessment, Miss Reed. That answers my initial question, but not the second, so I’ll reiterate; what will you do in the future?” Cotter asked.

Bones swallowed, trepidation towards Sasha’s answer built up. He knew what she was going to say about her mistake, but he couldn't fathom what she had planned for him.

“For starters, I will have to focus on moves that keep the enemy visible for small targets,” Sasha started, but hesitated, throwing a glance in Bones’ direction. Taking a deep breath, she continued.

“As for Bones, I’m not his official trainer. He’s been by my side since i was little but I’m sure he sees me as family and not as an authoritative figure… and I don't know how to resolve that problem,” she admitted.

Crestfallen, Bones felt himself sink closer to the floor. He wanted to vehemently deny her words, but couldn’t bring himself to say or do anything. Sasha’s assessment was accurate, she was like a little sister to him. It was even more soul-crushing that he knew himself well enough to know he wouldn’t be able to change his mindset over her either, even if he were to become her pokemon officially. 

However, he didn’t have time to ponder over his mistakes. Bones and Sasha both flinched as Cotter clapped. Confused, Bones lifted himself up to bring Cotter into his line of sight. The man was far more excited than he had ever seen him.

“Bravo, Miss Reed! Bravo!” Cotter exclaimed, leaving Sasha stunned beyond words at his sudden enthusiasm before regaining his composure.

“You know, Miss Reed, I’ve taken quite an interest in your education. As you know, the school ordinarily assigns review cases at random to the faculty,” he began. Sasha said nothing but nodded towards him. Bones perked his ears up at the new development.

“...however, you are considered a special case to this school.”

“Wha-” Sasha started but was cut off by the wave of Cotter’s hand.

“I’m not done, Miss Reed,” Cotter said calmly.

“You have incredible potential to excel in any field you want when you retire from your trainer career,” he explained. “You're near the top of the class in studies, you’ve just proven to have impeccable analysis skills, and your battle record seems to be improving.”

Flipping through the folder, Cotter slid a single sheet towards Sasha. Groaning to himself, Bones couldn’t read the paper even if he could see the top of the table. He had no choice but to wait and see what would be discussed next.

“What’s this?” Sasha asked before picking it up. Bones hopped onto his hind legs, trying to see the paper, but was pushed back onto the floor. Annoyed, Sasha held the paper beyond his line of sight as she read.

“Get down boy. I’ll tell you later,” Sasha scolded.

“My own personal program within the school,” Cotter replied. 

Bones felt his skin crawl. Sasha seemed unsettled as well as she grimaced immediately at his paper. Walking around the table to look directly at the man, he felt a deep rumbling growl escape from his maw.

“What are you playing at?” he barked.

Cotter, unperturbed by his outburst, continued to ignore him and carried on.

“I’m well aware of your perception of me, Ms Reed, but I assure you that this is most certainly in your best interest for your future. I recall you wish to run a pokemon daycare of your own, yes?”

“Yes sir,” Sasha replied.

“And you are aware of the requirements necessary to reach that goal?” Cotter asked.

“I need a minimum of three badges and need to have raised a minimum of four pokemon into maturity, right?”

“Correct, Ms Reed, but you also need to attend a specific set of curriculars. Not every pokemon can be treated the same, quite a number of them require specific knowledge in order to facilitate their upbringing as well as special techniques to handle them while their owner is away.”

Leaning forward, Cotter continued with a glint in his eyes. “And I do believe I can help you with that.”

Sasha looked down to the paper, reading in silence as Bones’ vision jumped between the two. He couldn’t bring himself to trust this man any further. Up to this point, his patience was reaching its end.

Determined not to be ignored any longer, Bones leaped onto the table to stand in front of him. With an annoyed sigh Cotter finally had no choice to address him. Bones felt some satisfaction in getting some sort of reaction from the obnoxious man.

Glancing behind him, Bones could see Sasha readying his pokeball. Surprisingly, Cotter stopped her as he held up his hand towards her. Pulling his wallet from back pocket, Cotter slid a few bills towards Sasha.

“Ms Reed, I would like to speak to your mothers pokemon alone for a few minutes if that's fine. Could I trouble you to procure some refreshments from the school's vending machine? You can get anything you like for yourself and Bones.”

“I... Okay,” Sasha agreed begrudgingly.

“Oh, I would prefer pinap juice, please,” Cotter added.

 _“I don’t want anything from this guy,”_ Bones thought to himself. 

Pocketing the money, Sasha got up and left the room. Turning towards Cotter, Bones leered at the man. Saying nothing, Cotter kept quiet until the sounds of Sasha’s footsteps disappeared. Bones noticed the paper she had been reading was left on the table top.

“Bones, over the course of her academic life, I have to acknowledge the support you’ve given Sasha as a friend and a member of her family,” Cotter began. “She needed you to be there for her. However it's time you stepped aside and let her start to grow on her own terms.”

Before he realized it, Bones felt a vicious growl rumble within him. The very idea of leaving her side was nothing less than abandonment in his eyes.

“Oh come now, surely you’ve noticed it. The past few days have been nothing short of incredible. I don’t know why, but she is clearly driven to improve. Just hear me out okay?” Cotter asked, a hint of pleading carried in his voice. “If she agrees, I can help broaden her knowledge of pokemon that the school doesn’t cover. Each region has vastly differing pokemon. This will help her in her gym circuit as well as give her a head start in the workforce.”

Bones was still unconvinced, he held his defiant stance. If this man was telling the truth, it still didn’t explain why he suddenly had this change of heart. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Cotter released another sigh.

“Robert asked me to watch over her school academics,” Cotter admitted.

“Just like you needed to support her, I needed to challenge her. I thought if I did, she would finally build up the courage to excel. I don’t know why and I really don’t care, but she is finally in a position for me to offer her the tools to succeed.”

Bones relaxed himself as he thought about what Cotter had said. Cotter had always been such a bastard in his eyes, but maybe he wasn’t so bad. Even though he didn’t approve of his methods, Bones reluctantly understood why he had done and said the things he had.

“My plan, Bones, is for Sasha to join my classes and begin battling with my own assortment of pokemon and begin studying regional pokemon from Kanto, Hoenn, Unova, and even Sinnoh.”

Bones felt himself stiffen at his words. He effectively would have to take a step back in his role as her battle partner. He always joked that he didn’t have to listen to Sasha because she wasn’t his true master, but the truth was that he had become accustomed to her commands in battle. Bones’ gaze fell to his paws as he considered what he might have to do before laying down on the table.

“You know, that doesn’t mean you can’t come to the school with her and watch her matches,” Cotter offered as if Bones’ expression alone told him everything he needed to know.

Bones got up and hopped off the table. Turning to Cotter, he reluctantly gave him a nod and a short bark as a sign of his consent. Cotter explained in detail what his plans were for Sasha, but Bones slowly began to tune him out as he began to bury himself deeper and deeper in thought.

As much as he didn’t trust Cotter, he knew the man put education first in any situation; many times his methods left Sasha crying. His role as her support was left untouched as he could still support her from home even if he wouldn’t be her direct battle partner.

When Sasha finally returned, Cotter handed her the papers again as he began to go into details once more, this time omitting the truth of Robert's request. After Cotter finished his spiel, he gestured to Bones.

“Bones is on board as well. We both agree this is important for your future.”

As Sasha considered his offer, her eyes never left the paper as she studied it. After a moment she announced her decision.

“I want to do it, but I’ll have to talk to my mom about it,” she firmly answered.

“Of course,” Cotter replied with a warm smile.

Mixed feelings swarmed his head as Bones heard her answer. He was proud of her; proud of her confidence to move forward. He was disappointed; disappointed that he would be far less influential of her growth. He was scared; scared their bond could suffer if they didn’t battle together in the future. In the end, his pride for her outweighed everything as he flailed his tail back and forth for her.

With their business concluded, Cotter began to organize his papers back into his folders. As he did this, a small envelope fell to the floor and slid beneath the table. As it fell, Bones noticed a small red cross in the corner. Figuring it was the right thing to do, Bones stopped and went to pick it up. Noticing it had already been opened, Bones could detect a familiar scent from within; it was Robert’s.

 _“Well...he did say Robert was in cahoots with him,”_ Bones mused to himself..

“What did you find, Bones?” Sasha asked, noticing he wasn't following her out the door.

Picking it up in his jaws gently, he pawed at Cotter's leg to get his attention.

Looking over, Cotter quickly snatched the letter from him before Sasha drew near.

“Ah! Much obliged, Bones. It’s a letter from a friend,” Cotter quickly replied. “It’s getting late, you surely need to go home, right Ms Reed?”

Adjusting her purse, Sasha nodded and waved Bones over then departed. Looking up, Bones admired the confidence she held with each step. No matter what was going to happen, he was excited to see where her future would lead her.

To Be Continued...

* * *

Authors Note:

2020 has been quite the terrible year for everyone. I've had to have surgery, had my house heavily damaged by Hurricane Laura just to be slapped by Delta a month later. The result of being nearly homeless for a long time hit me with a few anxiety attacks severe enough to send me to the hospital on multiple occasions and 2020 finally concluded with getting rear ended and have to find a way to repair my car. I’ll be frank, it hasn’t been the best year for me, but thankfully I've had good friends on here, discord, twitch, and in life to support me and help me through this difficult time.

I wholeheartedly apologize for the massive delay for this chapter as I’ve had to live each day with no idea what the next day will hold. I’ve had to sleep in my car, travel between states on my days off in order to have a bed to sleep in, and rarely have had access to a computer to make any sort of progress in my work. I've even had to go onto a hiatus for streaming on Twitch. Going forward, I will still be working on my story as much as time permits but I sadly may have another 2 to 4 month gap between chapters. This is due to construction beginning on my house soon; this will leave me temporarily homeless again as i travel around to work and finding places to stay.

I promise I haven't given up. On the contrary, I've been working on things for the story via pen/paper.

But enough about that, let’s talk about the story.

Thank you once more for your patience and I hope you’ve enjoyed the ride so far. I’m not sure what the proper protocol is for swapping points of view between characters, so I'm improvising. Each perspective swap will be represented by an underscore break as well as the name of the person/pokémon in the upper right of the page after it. I apologize if this might confuse people and I'm open to suggestions to handle it better if there are any. As I’ve never written anything, I’m learning as I go.

This actually has been incredibly helpful for me to write each character as their own entity and their own personalities. This has helped me reduce any risk of breaking character in each section. As I go forward I will more than likely restructure the first few chapters (or this one) depending on the feedback.

Hope to see you next chapter!


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